J.B. Spins

Jazz, film, and improvised culture.

Thursday, July 31, 2014

Sound + Vision ’14: The Winding Stream

They
are the first family of American Roots music and they represent royalty at its
most hardscrabble. While many of their songs dated back generations, country
music as a thing to market and identify with pretty much started with the
Carter Family and a handful of other artists signed to Victor Records during
the recording industry’s infancy. Beth Harrington chronicles the family history
behind the music in The Winding Stream:
the Carters, the Cashes, and the Course of Country Music (trailer here), which screens
free of charge during the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Sound + Vision Film
Series.

The
Carters lived most of their lives in the Poor Valley region of southern Virginia.
It was not named with irony. The land is hard and unforgiving, but most work
still revolves around agriculture. However, A.P. Carter had an ambition notion
the family’s musical talent could earn them a better life. With his somewhat
reluctant wife Sara and sister-in-law Maybelle, Carter formed a trio that would
be known professionally as the Carter Family. At great inconvenience, A.P.
dragged the women out to perform for Victor producer Ralph Peer, who was
scouring the region like a commercial Alan Lomax for songs that would appeal to
a “traditional” market.

Of
course, the Carter Family perfectly fit the bill, but they nearly forgot about
their legendary sessions during the lag between the informal recordings and the
release of their 78s. Nevertheless, they sold well enough to vindicate A.P.
Carter’s lofty ambitions. Unfortunately, the original ensemble would eventually
fracture along with A.P.’s marriage to Sara. For years, Maybelle Carter
performed with her daughters as Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters before
reclaiming the official Carter Family mantle. As most fans know, one of the
Carter Sisters was June, who turned the head of a talented but troubled young
performer named Johnny Cash.

While
telling the Carter story, Harrington also addresses some largely forgotten
early Twentieth Century cultural history, such as the phenomenon of ultra-high
wattage Border Radio and the ethically problematic attribution of traditional
songs assumed by the likes of A.P. Carter. For obvious reasons, Johnny Cash
plays an essential role in the film, but Harrington never lets him outshine the
Carters. Her musical instincts are also quite shrewd, including plenty of
archival clips, a stirring rendition of the title song by Rosanne Cash, and a bizarrely
good musical flash mob performance of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” attesting
to the song’s lasting resonance.

Harrington
does indeed touch all the necessary documentary bases, but arguably what is
most refreshing about Stream is her
sensitive treatment of the largely white God-fearing, under-advantaged population
of Poor Valley. There is no sneering at their “Jesus talk” or condescending
commentary on their un-cosmopolitan style. Instead, she respects them on their
terms.

Winding is often
entertaining, featuring original performances from the likes of John Prine and
Cheryl Crow, but it also submerges viewers in the ancient spirit of their
artifice-free music. One commentator says the Carters’ music exposes us as the “fakers”
we are—and it is easy to get what he means. Recommended for fans of “roots”
music and those who appreciate old school Americana, The Winding Stream screens for free this coming Monday (8/4) at the
Walter Reade Theater, as part of Sound + Vision.

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Fantasia ’14: The Desert

If
zombies have not completely jumped the shark for you after the spectacle of the
unruly San Diego zombie walk, than this might be the right film to regroup
with. Yes, the zombie apocalypse has fallen, but three survivors largely tune
out the shuffling hordes for long stretches of time in Christoph Behl’s The Desert (trailer here), which screens
during the 2014 Fantasia International Film Festival.

Axel,
Ana, and Jonathan have banded together, sharing a strangely intimate
post-zombie rising in a reinforced ranch-style house. Axel yearns for Ana, but
she has romantically paired-off with the better looking but far less sensitive
Jonathan. To serve as an emotional outlet, Ana set up a confession cam in their
backroom, where she often records her innermost thoughts. That is not really
Jonathan’s scene, but Axel often visits to secretly view the videos Ana
deposits in the supposedly sealed trunk. As Axel’s jealousy mounts, Ana
increasingly misinterprets his moodiness as hostility, deliberately
antagonizing him in turn.

Into
this awkward mix, Jonathan brings Pythagoras, a feral zombie he chains up in
the workroom to help facilitate some unfinished business from an extremely
uncomfortable game of Truth or Dare. Even during Armageddon, three is a crowd.
However, four is particularly unstable when the fourth is a zombie.

Without
question, Sabu’s Miss Zombieis the
new modern zombie classic of the last ten years or so. Desert never reaches its heights of pathos, but there is something distinctly
unsettling about its fatalistic portrayal of humanity. If ever there was a time
to rise up personal resentments, this would be it. Yet, the stress of the
apparently world-shattering crisis only amplifies their angst and recriminations.
Behl never shows us the anarchy unfolding outside their
house-that-is-not-a-home, but the confusing sounds are often more alarming than
the half-baked visual effects of z-grade zombie grind-em-outs.

As
the compulsively tattooed Axel, Lautaro Delgado puts on an acting clinic. It is
eerie how eloquently his body language reflects his inner emotional turmoil. In
contrast, Ana’s erratic character is much harder to get a handle on, but Victoria
Almeida valiantly labors to sell each shift of her psyche. However, William
Prociuk bears watching as Jonathan, the ostensibly boorish engineer.

At
times, The Desert is too existential
for its own good. Nevertheless, Behl successfully reinvents the zombie film as
a four character-one set (for all intents and purposes) relationship drama,
which is a neat trick. An ambitiously subtle zombie outing that works rather
well on balance, The Desert is
recommended for adventurous genre fans when it screens again next Tuesday (8/5)
as part of this year’s Fantasia.

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

AAIFF ’14: Song of the Phoenix

Dewey
Redman often played the suona, but he was amazing. Sadly, Chinese musicians who
have mastered the traditional trumpet-like reed instrument are becoming rather
scarce. Yet, an aging master’s chosen successor will try to carry on as best he
can in Wu Tianming’s final film, Song of
the Phoenix (trailer
here) , which
screens during the 2014 Asian American International Film Festival in New York.

Young
You Tianming’s underwhelming lung power is a distinct drawback for the
unforgiving suona. On the other hand, he has the heart and sensitivity of an
artist. During his years of youthful study, You often thought he was playing
second fiddle to his fellow apprentice, Lanyu. Yet their master Jiao Sanye chooses
You to learn the “Song of the Phoenix.” Considered the apex of suona
repertoire, the song is a requiem that masters will only play for the worthiest
deceased.

Unfortunately,
just as Tianming assumes the leadership of Jiao’s ensemble, demand for suona
musicians plummets. Instead, the villagers of his region increasingly opt for
western-style bands. With his health failing, Master Jiao has trouble
understanding the macro dynamics threatening the suona tradition.

It
is almost eerie how apt Phoenix is as
a summing up film for the late Wu. Perhaps best known for King of Masks, the “Fourth Generation” filmmaker is arguably even
more renowned for incubating “Fifth Generation” talent (notably including Chen
Kaige and Zhang Yimou) when tapped to lead the Xi’an Film Studios. He also
spent several years in America as an informal exile following the Tiananmen
Square crackdown. Clearly, he had a keen understanding of time’s passage and
the need to mentor successive generations.

Tao
Zeru is quite extraordinary as Master Jiao, evolving from the coldly
manipulative Prof. Kingsford of the suona into an ailing former legend,
struggling to make sense of the world that has passed him by. Li Mingcheng is
almost painfully earnest as the adult You. They are surrounded by a talented
supporting ensemble and some first-rate suona players.

Suona music might be an acquired taste, but it
nicely accents Phoenix’s incredible
backdrops, which often look like scenes from ancient watercolors. Frankly, the
film does not hold many surprises in terms of narrative arc or character
development, but it still gracefully critiques the ultra-modern go-go prejudices
that have lost sight of long-esteemed Chinese musical and cultural practices. Truly
lovely to look at, Song of the Phoenix is
worth seeing (particularly by those who appreciate Wu’s position in the Chinese
cinema pantheon) when it screens tonight (7/29) at the Village East, as part of
this year’s AAIFF.

Monday, July 28, 2014

AAIFF ’14: The Cotabato Sessions (short doc)

Experimental
percussionist Susie Ibarra is as comfortable playing with downtown stalwarts
like John Zorn and Dave Douglas as she is with the indigenous Maguindanaon
musicians of Cotabato City in Mindanao. However, she plays the role of an Alan
Lomax field recorder, documenting the music of Danongan Kalanduyan and his
friends and family in Ibarra & Joel Quizon’s short documentary The Cotabato Sessions (trailer here), which screens
before a special concert collaboration between Ibarra and her subjects during
this year’s Asian American International Film Festival.

The
heart of the Maguindanaon music Ibarra records is the kulintang, a series of
eight tuned gongs, but it also incorporates the lute-like kutiyapi. It rather
follows that percussion is a critical component to this form of music,
predating Christianity and Islam in the Philippines, given Ibarra’s interest. Somewhat
surprisingly though, it has been integrated into Maguindanaon Islamic social
customs, despite its traditional association with women musicians.

Ibarra
and Quizon capture some passionate performances, but the pulse of
percussion-driven ensembles is always best experienced live. Still, it is quite
a cinematic presentation, particularly the performances filmed in the open courtyard
of a local mosque (but not technically inside, because that would be
forbidden).

Ibarra’s commitment to musical preservation is
laudable and Quizon and cinematographer Maya Santos make it all look great
on-screen. Yet, we cannot help wondering what it sounds like when she jams with
her Maguindanaon colleagues, which is why Cotabato
is probably best screened in conjunction with a live performance, much like
its upcoming AAIFF presentation. Recommended for fans of so-called “World Music”
and percussion ensembles beyond category, the Cotabato Sessions screening, performance, and Q&A session will
commence this Wednesday night (7/30) at the Asia Society, as a programming
highlight of this year’s festival.

Jimmy Van Heusen: Swingin’ with Frank & Bing

What
sort of a tune does a test pilot write? Well, there was the Sinatra staple “Come
Fly with Me.” Sinatra fans might already know the vocalist recorded more tunes
by Jimmy Van Heusen than anyone else, but the extent to which the composer
served as Old Blue Eye’s Obi-wan could still come as a surprise. Van Heusen’s
life and body of work are surveyed in Jim Burn’s Jimmy Van Heusen: Swingin’ with Frank & Bing (promo here), which airs on
participating PBS stations at various times throughout the month of August.

In
a sense, Van Heusen is an apostolic link from Tin Pan Alley and the original
Great American Songwriters, like Irving Berlin, to the Swinging Madmen 1960s. As a man who felt instinctively
at home in a nightclub or tavern, Van Heusen was ideally suited to be a
song-plugger. Tunes like “Darn that Dream” quickly caught on, but it was his
association with Bing Crosby that took Van Heusen’s career to a higher level.
Following the crooner to Hollywood, Van Heusen wrote scores of hits with lyricist
Johnny Burke, including the Oscar winning “Swinging on a Star,” for Going My Way. Shrewdly, the accomplished
aviator volunteered as a test pilot for Lockheed during World War II, as a way
to maintain his high-flying Hollywood lifestyle while serving the war effort.

When
Crosby cooled off, Van Heusen found himself at loose ends, along with his old
pal from New York, Frank Sinatra. Rumor has it, Van Heusen interceded during
the baritone’s darkest hours and he would pen tunes with his new regularly
lyricist partner Sammy Cahn that defined the Sinatra comeback. Swingin’s best segments trace the
surprising origins of some of their most popular songs, such as “Love &
Marriage” written for a television musical production of Our Town, featuring Sinatra as the Stage Manager and Paul Newman
and Eva Marie Saint as the teenaged lovers, which frustratingly is not likely
to be released on home video anytime soon.

Burns
also talks to all the right people, including Frank Sinatra, Jr., Woody Allen,
jazz musicians Dr. Billy Taylor and John Pizzarelli, jazz-cabaret crossover
performers Jane Monheit and Eric Comstock, and Angie Dickinson and Shirley
MacLaine to vouch for Van Heusen’s charm. There are also generous helpings of performance
clips, largely focusing on Sinatra and Crosby, for obvious reasons.

Swingin’ will make
viewers nostalgic for the glory days of the hard partying yet patriotic Rat
Pack. In fact, writer-director Burns makes a persuasive case for Van Heusen as
Rat Packer Zero, the one who started it all. Clocking in around the hour mark,
the special could have run fifty percent longer without overstaying its
welcome. The entertaining and informative Jimmy
Van Heusen: Swingin’ with Frank & Bing airs on various PBS outlets
throughout the month of August, so check local listings.

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Fantasia ’14: Uzumasa Limelight

Westerns
were once a staple of American television, but now the genre has practically
disappeared. Presumably, this was bad news for stunt horse-back riders. Though
not quite to the same extent, production of Chanbara swordplay films has also
steeply declined in Japan, greatly reducing work for kirare-yaku, the extras
specially trained to be “cut-up.” It is the end of an era for Seiichi Kamiyama,
but he always stays true to his art in Ken Ochiai’s Uzumasa Limelight (trailer here), which screened during this year’s
Fantasia International Film Festival.

Much
to his surprise, Seizô Fukumoto has become the world’s most famous extra.
Already the focus of several media reports on the kirare-yaku, he now appears
in his first leading role, playing a character not so very different from
himself. The Uzumasa establishment long recognized the beauty of Kamiyama’s
death scenes. In fact, he was once given a carved rehearsal sword from the hero
of a perennially popular samurai TV show (perhaps inspired by the long-running Mito Kōmon). Like a Japanese Gunsmoke, it continued for forty-years,
providing Kamiyama regular employment, even when the star’s son took over for
his late father. Unfortunately, it has just been canceled by the younger
generation of executives.

Suddenly,
Kamiyama and his colleagues are scuffling for work, making do appearing as
corpses in yakuza dramas and performing in the suburban Kyoto studio’s live action
show for tourists. Even though his stock is falling, young extra Satsuki Iga comes
to Kamiyama for mentoring in his traditional skills. Thanks to his training and
conditioning, she lands a stunt role on a new hipster Chanbara series, where
she catches the eye of the obnoxious leading man. Suddenly, she is a star in
her own right, but the Uzumasa old guard just keep getting older.

Yes,
Uzumasa Limelight is a lot like A Star is Born crossed with Charlie
Chaplin’s Limelight, with jidaigeki
costuming and the occasional nods to Ozu, but it is profoundly moving and
highly satisfying for genre fans. Fukumoto might be one of the great
kirare-yaku (he was recruited for the Tom Cruise vehicle The Last Samurai), but his touching performance as Kamiyama
suggests he could easily move into more conventionally dramatic roles. With
unusual economy, his deeply lined face and subtly communicative body language
eloquent express his pride in his craft and his pupil, as well as the weight of
all his life disappointments. He proves the film’s axiom—if you can act
convincingly during a sword fight than you are a good actor.

While
Fukumoto has been practicing his art for fifty years or so, Limelight represents the straight up
film debut of 2012 World Junior Wushu champ Chihiro Yamamoto, portraying Iga
with a maturity beyond her years. Their teacher-protégé chemistry feels very real,
but complex in a true-to-life way. Frankly, Fukumoto seems to bring out the
best in everyone, because Limelight is
stuffed with additional lovely little supporting turns.

The
production design team headed by Takashi Yoshida creates a vivid sense of the
old Kyoto studio world through their richly detailed work. However, one of the
most important contributions comes from swordplay choreographer Mitsuhiko
Seike, whose big film-within-the-film action-spectacle delivers the goods with
style to spare.

Although Limelight shares
a certain nostalgic kinship with Ochiai’s previous film, The Tiger Mask, it is more closely akin to his very personal
docu-essay short Frog in the Well. It
is an absolutely super film that should be a breakout vehicle for Fukumoto,
Yamamoto, and Ochiai. With a future American theatrical release to come, it was
one of the high points of this year’s Fantasia, which continues through August
6th. Those in Montreal should definitely also check out the honest and
touching anime historical epic Giovanni’sIsland and consider the highly entertaining but slightly ragged around the
edges White Stormand Seventh Code, as well as the generally
amusing Premature.

Fantasia ’14: Gun Woman

If
revenge is a dish best served cold, this is a blood Popsicle. It is one blisteringly
chilly, gory film. If the work of uni-named actress Asami means anything to
you, then you already expect something extreme. The star of Zombie Ass: Toilet of the Dead and The Machine Girl (as well as scores of
crazier sounding titles) will become a weapon of vengeance in Kurando Mitsutake’s
Gun Woman (not safe for
anywhere trailer here), which
had its Canadian premiere at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival.

Fair
warning, if you are squeamish or have an average sensitivity to violence, Gun Woman is not for you. Frankly, the
first half hour is almost prohibitively brutal, but it will have you down with
the mastermind’s general desire for payback. His target is the sadist heir to a
multinational conglomerate fortune. “Hamazaki’s Son,” as he is known, uses his
wealth to fund a life incredibly foul sex crimes. One of his victims was the
wife of the “Mastermind,” a brilliant surgeon, who is not without means either.

It
is impossible to out-gun the bodyguards retained by Hamazaki’s Son, but there
is one place where he is relatively unprotected: an exclusive necrophilia club.
He has a plan to place Mayumi there, with a gun and thirteen bullets. She is a
meth addict he flat out bought expressly for the job. He trains her to become a
killing machine, but for reasons that will be only too clear, she will only have
twenty-two minutes to complete the hit.

Again,
it is important to emphasize this could be one of the roughest films at
Fantasia, or anywhere not regularly screening A Serbian Film. However, Asami earns all kinds of credit for her
bold, frequently naked and blood-splattered performance. Although she has
virtually no dialogue, she vividly portrays Mayumi’s evolution from drugged out
zombie to freaked out victim on the way to becoming a lethal killing machine.

It
all looks and sounds very Drafthousy, thanks to Mitsutake’s conscious efforts
to evoke a 1980s straight to-VHS vibe. This too requires a specialized taste.
However, his narrative structure serves the material surprisingly well. He also
elicits the perfect performances from his cast. Asami and Kairi Narita are both
totally hardcore as Mayumi and the Mastermind. Noriaki R. Kamata is off-the-charts
clammy and maniacal as Hamazaki’s Son, while Matthew Miller is appropriately
detached as the American assassin narrator.

Action does not get any sleazier than Gun Woman. One could easily object to it
on multiple moral and aesthetic grounds, but it stays true to Mitsutake’s
vision. If you have any doubts whether it is for you, then it most certainly is
not. Not advised for civilian consumption, it is best saved for fans of Asami
and the comparable work of Indonesian exploitation auteur Arizal. There are
probably intense debates still raging in Montreal following its Fantasia
premiere, but given the cult reputation of those involved, Gun Woman is likely to have legs, so consider yourself warned.

Saturday, July 26, 2014

AAIFF ’14: A Time in Quchi

There
is a different rhythm to life in the Quchi countryside. Chang Tso-chi acclimates
viewers to it far quicker than his ten year old protagonist. Kuan Hsiao-pao is
used to Taipei’s high speed internet, but a summer spent with his traditional
grandfather will have lasting significance in Chang’s A Time in Quchi (trailer here), which screens during this year’s Asian American International Film Festival in New York.

At
this point, Kuan is used to his parents’ chaos, so their likely divorce is not
exactly shocking. He will spend his summer vacation with his paternal
grandfather, so his folks will have more time to quarrel, but he is rather put
off by the old man’s highly structured lifestyle. He is also less than thrilled
when his chop-busting younger sister “Seaweed” arrives sometime later.

Since
this is Taiwan, kids still go to school even during summer vacation, so Kuan is
duly enrolled at the village primary school. Not surprisingly, he is initially
rather standoffish, but Kuan soon forms his first real friendship with Huang
Ming-chuan, an aboriginal classmate. Unfortunately, just as Kuan embraces
Quchi, tragedy strikes.

Quchi is a subtle and
wistful coming of age story that showcases some extraordinarily natural young
actors. However, it must be completely compartmentalized from Chang, who is
essentially the Taiwanese Polanski, except he is not being sheltered from justice
by the French government. Frankly, it is a little creepy to realize the
incident he was convicted for occurred at a party for Quchi, but that is not the fault of Yang Liang-yu and his co-stars.

While
Yang’s work might be too understated for those who like to bring their Fault in Our Stars branded hanky to the
movies, he keeps what could have been a saccharine melodrama feel mature and
grounded. He also rather graciously allows Lin Ya-jo to steal all of Seaweed’s
scenes. Nonetheless, it is veteran actor-screenwriter Kuan Yun-lung (a.k.a.
Kuan Kuan) who really gives the film its heart and integrity as the gruff but
wise grandfather.

Even at the height of young Kuan’s city slicker
culture shock, he can appreciate the natural beauty of Quchi’s rivers and
foothills. Cinematographer Yuan Ching-kuo certainly did as well. Visually, it
is a much more arresting, big canvas film than you would expect from the
coming-of-age genre. It represents nice work from a large cast and creative
crew that should not be tarnished by Chang’s subsequent scandal. Recommended
for those who appreciate quiet but telling family dramas, A Time in Quchi screens this coming Monday (7/28) at the Village
East, as part of the 2014 AAIFF.

Fantasia ’14: Goal of the Dead

During
a zombie apocalypse, population density is considered a bad thing. That makes a
sports stadium a very bad place to be, even in a simple country village like
Caplongue. Everyone in town will be there for the grudge match with the
Parisian professionals, including a zombie. One infection logically leads to
another in Benjamin Rocher & Thierry Poiraud’s two-part zombie soccer epic Goal of the Dead (trailer here), which screened
in its entirety at the 2014 Fantasia International Film Festival.

The
last time the Olympique de Paris squad played Caplongue, they hired away the
highly ranked amateur team’s star player. Seventeen years later, Sam Lorit is
at the end of his career. Expecting to be received like a returning hero, the
over-the-hill center is quite taken aback by Caplongue’s hostility. It seems
they never forgave him for abandoning the team and the town. In fact, the local
doctor is so set on revenge he has his son, Lorit’s former teammate Jeannot, on
an aggressive doping regimen. Unfortunately, the latest batch has some nasty zombie
side effects.

Forget
about zombie bites. Jeannot spreads the contagion through projectile vomiting
to the face. Most of the two teams are quickly dispatched on the field, but
Lorit is ironically saved by a meritless red card. Suddenly, he finds himself
fighting to survive with Cléo, the daughter he never knew he had.

Finally,
someone has combined soccer with zombie vomit. That is basically the kind of
film or films the Goal duology is.
Released as two separate installments in France, Rocher’s first half has far
more exposition and scene-setting than your average zombie film. You will
practically know Lorit’s career stats by heart when it is done. At least in the
process, he very considerately sets up the pins for Poiraud to knock down in
his rock ‘em sock ‘em second period, bringing more laughs with his elevated
mayhem.

Rather
unexpectedly, Alban Lenoir decides to do some acting as Lorit, taking him
through a full range of emotions as best he can, given the carnage. Tiphanie
Daviot’s Cléo also brings more energy and attitude than the typical horror
movie teenager, but her fellow townsfolk are largely standard issue
provincials.

Goal
is a lot of gory, messy fun, but it never stands
the zombie genre on its ear like Tommy Wirkola way-better-than-the-original Dead Snow: Red vs. Dead, which also screens
at this year’s Fantasia. Still, Rocher, Poiraud, and their battery of
screenwriters do not let a good concept go to waste. Delivering the promised
madness, Goal of the Dead is
recommended for zombie fans, fresh from its screening at this year’s Fantasia.

Friday, July 25, 2014

AAIFF ’14: The Rice Bomber

He
represented the dark side of agrarianism in a way the Unabomber could relate to,
but at least Yang Rumen took precautions to avoid injuries. The fully pardoned bomb-maker
turned organic food activist’s creation story is chronicled in Cho Li’s The Rice Bomber (trailer here), which screens
during the 2014 Asian American International Film Festival in New York.

By
working class standards, Yang’s father did okay selling chickens in the city,
but the young man always identified with his rice farming grandparents. He
spent his formative years on their farm and it is there he returns after his military
discharge. Yang almost went Full Metal
Jacket on the NCOs who persistently bullied him, suggesting he is wound
rather tightly.

With
Taiwan’s rural economy stagnating, Yang migrates back to the city, becoming a
street hawker. That is where he meets a preteen aboriginal competitor and
reconnects with his childhood sweetheart, “Troublemaker.” She lives off her
gangster-politician father, but fancies herself a revolutionary. Yet, she balks
whenever Yang asks her to assist his new friend’s three younger siblings.
Slowly, Yang’s environmental and class consciousness grows, but his engagement takes
a quantum leap when tragedy strikes. At least, he carefully labels his bombs
and judiciously minimizes their potency.

For
a film that starts with a bomb disposal scene, Rice is surprisingly talky and cerebral. Clearly, it would rather
discuss agricultural policy than indulge in a car chase, but its analysis
basically boils down to “they are out
to get the farmers.” Arguably though, most of the leftist demonstrators come
across just as kneejerk and clueless as the government bureaucrats. The
intermittent time shifts do not exactly do any favors for clarity either.
Nevertheless, there is something fascinating about Yang’s slow descent into
mad-ish-ness, even when the hardscrabble realities depicted on-screen clash with
Peyman Yazdanian’s sentimental score.

Indeed,
Cho’s dispassionate approach is likely to leave many viewers cold, but the lack
of cheap grandstanding is rather refreshing. There are the odd moments here and
there, such as Yang marveling at the cache of guns Troublemaker has scrounged,
for no practical purpose. Yet, it mostly feels docu-real.

Having
previously helmed the underappreciated adultery thriller Zoom Hunting(a 2010 AAIFF selection), Cho once again shows a knack
for subverting genre expectations. While Rice
probably will not radicalize any viewers who were not already teetering on
the brink, it definitely captures the messy bedlam of contemporary history.
Consistently interesting (but not for those looking for simple stories and
simplistic take-aways), The Rice Bomber screens
tomorrow (7/26) at the Village East and Sunday (7/27) at the Made in NY Media
Center, as part of this year’s AAIFF.

Thursday, July 24, 2014

AAIFF ’14: Iranian Shorts Program

If
the cast and crew of an Iranian film chose to work under conditions of
anonymity, it usually a good sign you are about to watch something bold and
challenging. While that is not the case for these filmmakers, based in either
Iran or America, most of their assembled films reveal much about the state of
Iranian society. Alienation and uncertainty are themes cropping up throughout
the Iranian Shorts Program, which screens during the 2014 Asian American International Film Festival.

The
short block gets off to a bracing start with Tara Atashgah’s For the Birds. It is not just a film—it is
an indictment of Iran’s Sharia laws against adultery and those who enforce
them. The title might sound comedic, but it is really a tribute. The “birds”
are women like Atefeh Rajab Sahaleh, a sixteen year old girl executed for
adultery in 2006, to whom the film is dedicated.

For
artistic reasons, Birds is not
subtitled, but it is painfully easy to follow the story nonetheless. Nazli K.
Lou vividly expresses Sahaleh’s fear and bewilderment, while Chervine Namani
powerfully captures the horror and impotence of a decent bystander. This is a
film that will knock the wind out of people, yet visually it is quite polished
and striking. Without question, it is the class of the field.

Since
it is just an excerpt from a larger documentary, the sampling of Nahid Rezai’s Dream of Silk is sort of an apple among
oranges. Still, the fatalism and lack of confidence in the future expressed by
the high school girls she interviews at her Iranian alma mater is undeniably
telling. The whole thing is probably worth seeing.

Clearly,
Hamed Rajabi’s Turnabout and To Ride a Bicycle are intended to be
seen in dialogue with each other. Both address the exile experience following
the 2009 election protests and subsequent crackdown from different perspectives.
Arguably, Bicycle is the stronger of
the pair, following Mahsa as she struggles to dispose of the bike her former boyfriend
precipitously left behind. Of course, she cannot ride it. That would be
immodest. Turnabout does not quite
have the same pop, but Rajabi conveys a strong sense of place, observing a soon
to be exile fruitlessly searching for friends at his former university to say
goodbye to.

Given
it brevity, Mohammad Farahani’s The Theft
is difficult to discuss without giving the whole game away. Regardless of
the O.Henry-esque development, it depicts the grim realities of poverty,
particularly those endured by women, in no uncertain terms.

After
For the Birds, Anahita Ghazvinizadeh’s
When the Kid was a Kid is likely to
generate the most heated response. It is probably safe to say Taha has sexual
identity issues, perhaps stemming from a problematic relationship with his
often absent divorced mother. When the other kids in his apartment building
play dress-up, Taha dons his mother’s dresses and make-up. Just what he gets
out of the process remains ambiguous, but it is striking how readily the other
children accept him as “Shohreh.” It is brave lead performance, but the entire
youthful ensemble is quite engaging and unaffected.

The
Iranian Short Block ends with another ringer. Frankly, Assal Ghawami’s A Day in Eden is respectably earnest and
boasts a very fine performance from Briana Marin, but the American-set story of
an Iranian cellist encountering an extremely difficult nursing home patient
does not really speak to realities of contemporary Iranian life.

There
is a lot viewers can glean and digest from the Iranian Shorts Program,
especially the eye-opening For the Birds and
the patient but forceful To Ride a Bike.
Recommended for connoisseurs of short films and Iranian cinema, it screens this
Saturday (7/26) at the Village East, as part of this year’s AAIFF.

AAIFF ’14: Awesome Asian Bad Guys

You
will definitely recognize Al Leong. He was the henchman Sgt. Riggs strangled
with his legs while he was administering electroshock torture in the original Lethal Weapon. That is a typical day at
the office for Leong. PBS’s National Film Society set out to pay tribute to Leong
and his fellow character actors with a web-series that turned into a festival
film. Prepare to show all due respect when Stephen Dypiangco & Patrick
Epino’s Awesome Asian Bad Guys (trailer here) screens during
the 2014 Asian American International Film Festival in New York.

Internet
video producers Dypiangco and Epino are on a mission to assemble an Expendables-like
team of Asian action movie heavies, who will finally have the chance to be the
good guys. They have two good reasons: they must protect Tamlyn Tomita (from
the Karate Kid 2)and prevent commercial actor Aaron Takahasi from trying to permanently
eliminate all his casting call competition.

The
cool thing about AABG is how it
deftly satirizes Hollywood’s Asian stereotyping while still lovingly honoring
actors like Leong and George Cheung (Rambo
II, Rush Hour) for making the best of a less than optimal job market. It is
also mind-blowing to hear Tomita plays somebody’s mom on Glee (is that show still on?). Naturally, she makes a great
damsel-in-distress and/or femme fatale.

However, there is just too much of Dypiangco
and Epino shticking it up as themselves. Frankly, there probably ought to be more
action and less comedy, because that is what an Al Leong fan would want to see.
Nevertheless, it is entertaining to watch the Awesome Asian Bad Guys finally
get a curtain call.

Since
AABG clocks in just under an hour,
the AAIFF has paired it with a short featuring two fairly awesome bad guys. A
pair of Yakuza are driving deep into the Mojave Desert to bury a body in Robbie
Ikegami’s Pull Over to Kill. This
will be the final errand for Watanabe, the soon to be retired strawberry farmer,
but hot-headed Yasumoto is just starting out as a retainer. Needless to say
complications ensue.

Viewers might predict the general trajectory of
this two-hander, but Ikegami and cinematographer Alan Vidali make it look
awfully stylish. Nor can anyone argue with Tatsuya Ito’s world weary
steeliness, as Watanabe. The use of Michiko Hamamura’s “Tabu” and Saori Yuki’s “Yoaki
No Scat” also vividly evoke the 1960’s vibe of many classic Yakuza pictures. In
fact, POTK could even serve as an
effective music video for them, inspiring post-screening downloads. It is a
satisfying short that nicely fits with AABG.
Recommended as a good festival package, Awesome
Asian Bad Guys and Pull Over to Kill screen
together tomorrow (7/25) at the Village East and Saturday at the Made in NY
Media Center, as part of this year’s AAIFF.

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Come Back to Me: There Goes the Neighborhood

The
message is clear: get a dog. They are protective and sensitive to the
supernatural. Sarah and Josh’s neighbor simply cannot abide them, but unfortunately,
they do not have one. Things will get decidedly creepy for her as a result in
Paul Leyden’s Come Back to Me (trailer here), which opens this
Friday in New York.

It
is pretty clear from the opening prelude Dale is a little off. He seems to be
one of life’s victims, but there is something wrong about his responses. Not
surprisingly, he grows up to be a weird, twitchy adult, who moves in right
across the street from Sarah. Clearly, she is just his type, while she would
prefer to avoid him altogether. However, she soon realizes his arrival
coincides with the vivid night terrors suddenly plaguing her.

Her
M.D. friend can relate. She too had similar experiences, but they subsided with
a little medication. She also got her dog Buster around the same time. In a
funny coincidence, Dale used to deliver her groceries, until he switched
assignment due to his canine aversion. Even Sarah realizes Dale is a profoundly
bad guy. She just cannot figure out how he is tormenting her. It is kind of a
big revelation, but the title of former kick-boxer Wrath James White’s source
novel pretty much gives it away, so do not watch the credits too closely.

Frankly,
Leyden deserves credit for not going the found footage route, even though some
digital video footage plays a pivotal role. He actually set out to make a real
movie instead. It is still a rather mixed bag, but there are a couple of nasty
surprises in store for viewers and he nicely maintains a consistent atmosphere
of dread.

Nevertheless,
he never really capitalizes on the potentially disorienting Vegas setting,
aside from occasionally showing Josh at work dealing at his casino table. In
fact, Josh is often problematic, disappearing to sulk over his sterility at the
worst possible times. The fact that they own smart phones but never check their
voicemail is annoyingly convenient. Katie Walder furrows her brow well enough for
us to buy into Sarah’s ordeal and Nathan Keyes is appropriately unsettling as
Dale, suggesting a restrained Crispin Glover. Even so, good old Buster often
steals the show.

Maybe it is the over-exposed looking flashback
scenes, but CBTM never truly takes
flight, despite some promising elements. The ending is also likely to be
divisive, but it earns points for avoiding the clichéd horror movie finale. Mainly
for dark thriller-horror movie addicts, Come
Back to Me opens this Friday (7/25) in New York at the AMC Empire and also launches
on VOD platforms.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Beneath: Where’s that Canary When They Need It?

As
a soon-to-be retired coalminer, George Marsh’s way of life is slowing dying. So
is he, but maybe not as slowly as he assumes. Naturally, there is an epic
cave-in on his last day in the mine, but there might be more pressing concerns
for his stranded party than their dwindling oxygen supply in Ben Ketai’s Beneath (trailer here), which opens this
Friday at the IFC Center.

To
celebrate his retirement, Marsh’s daughter Samantha has returned from New York
to attend his send-off. Perhaps she shouldn’t have. True, her father’s lungs
are as black as, well coal, but he resents being pressured into retirement. After
all, he never missed a day’s work in the thirty-one years since the mine
opened. He also takes her environmental law practice as a not so subtle rebuke.
Despite her new life, she can still relate to the guys relatively well,
particularly her former high school sweetheart. She tries to convince them, she
is really in their corner. It is the corporations she is against. However, they
seem to think they wouldn’t have jobs without the mining company. As the
discussion gets heated, she accepts a dare to come down with them the next
morning.

That
would be her father’s last day on the job, which pretty much guarantees some
sort of movie disaster. Add in his fish-out-of-water daughter and a rookie with
only a few weeks experience into the mix and you have the makings of a perfect
subterranean storm. Indeed, something duly goes drastically wrong. As Ketai’s
primary characters hunker down in the shelter awaiting rescue, strange things
start to happening, risking their survival.

When
it comes to genre films set within mine shafts, Beneath leaves Abandoned Minein the dust. Ketai certainly creates a claustrophobic mood, but the real
strength of the film is his sympathetic grasp of the working class environment.
Never condescending, Beneath conveys
the pride of the miners, derived in no small measure from the dangerous
conditions they face each day. Yet, the film is almost too subtle presenting
the question whether supernatural forces are plaguing the survivors or it is a
case of rampant oxygen-deprived psychosis.

Unfortunately,
the film also focuses on the wrong Marsh, following Samantha’s POV and largely sidelining
the perennially under-rated Jeff Fahey, as the grizzled George. Kelly Noonan is
perfectly fine as the rebellious daughter, but her perspective is pretty
standard issue woman-in-horror-movie-jeopardy stuff. Amongst the supporting
miners, Brent Briscoe definitely stands out as Marsh’s jovial buddy, Mundy. Witchblade’s Eric Etebari also glowers
memorably as the uptight, chauvinistic Masek.

Without
question, Beneath is one of the
moodiest films acquired by IFC Midnight. While it is certainly a genre film, it
never comes across as exploitative. Nevertheless, it leaves an intriguing
side-plot regarding a similar 1920’s disaster frustratingly under-developed and
closes with the clichéd eye-roller of a denouement. Better than the gruesome
poster would lead you to expect, Beneath is
recommended for those who horror films that cross-over category labels. It
opens this Friday night (7/25) in New York at the IFC Center.

Monday, July 21, 2014

A Master Builder: Ibsen Re-Staged by Shawn & Gregory

Critics
generally rank The Master Builder not
far below Hedda Gabler and A Doll’s House in Henrik Ibsen’s oeuvre, but it
is revived far less frequently. Notable past productions include a 2008
Malayalam film adaptation, a 1992 Broadway revival featuring Lynne Redgrave,
and a 1960 television special starring E.G. Marshall. That did not leave a lot
of iconic baggage for André Gregory to contend with when he staged a modern
translation penned by his frequent collaborator and dinner companion Wallace
Shawn. Their take on Ibsen’s somewhat autobiographical play now hits the big
screen, but the original’s Scandinavian angst remains unmistakable in the Jonathan
Demme helmed A Master Builder (trailer here), which opens this
Wednesday at Film Forum.

Halvard
Solness is probably dying and his former mentor Knut Brovik most certainly is.
Before his imminent demise, Brovik would like to see Solness make some sort of
affirmation of his son Ragnar’s talents. However, the celebrated architect refuses
to do so, preferring to keep the junior Brovik under his thumb as his draftsman.
Frankly, he is afraid the son might usurp his position, just as he unseated his
father. It also suits Solness to maintain a high degree of control over Ragnar,
considering he has taken the young man’s fiancée Kaya Fosli as his mistress.

Solness’s
relationship to his wife Aline is even more complicated than his dealings with
the Brovik family. It seems he feels profound guilt over a shared tragedy from
their past that will be revealed over time. The catalyst for his subsequent
revelations and soul searching will be the arrival of Hilde Wangel, a
free-spirited young woman, who was quite taken with Solness as a teenager.
Evidently, he made some rather inappropriate advances at the time. Yet, it was
the vision of Solness laying a wreath atop her village’s newly erected church
steeple that really made an impression on her.

It
will be Builder’s curse to be
inevitably compared to Louis Malle’s classic career coda Vanya on 42nd Street, but that is a ridiculously high
standard to be measured against. It is impossible replicate the evocative vibe
of the gutted New Amsterdam Theatre in which it was mounted and Joshua Redman’s
smoky harbop musical interludes are also sorely missed. Instead, Demme doubles
down on intimacy, focusing on his actors and their human frailties.

As
an acting showcase, Builder is still considerable,
particularly Shawn, who gives full voice to Solness’s guilt and arrogance. He
is a complex but manipulative character, who must be one of the great
late-career challenges a stage actor can tackle. While it is a smaller role, Gregory
cuts an acutely tragic figure as the physically and emotionally ailing Brovik.
It is also good to see Broadway and Vanya
veteran Larry Pine return as Dr. Elert Herdal. While it is smaller part, he
has a very nice scene drawing out Solness’s initial first act confession.

Although
Aline Solness’s preoccupation with obligation is difficult to re-contextualize
in a modern production, Julie Hagerty still manages to flesh out a
multidimensional portrayal. However, Lisa Joyce never successful integrates
Wanger’s contradictory aspects. As a result, she largely remains a
destabilizing cycher, periodically stirring matters up, apparently because that
is what she does.

Builder
is a serious and sensitive interpretation of
Ibsen, but it does not have the timeless élan of Malle’s Vanya. At times, it is almost too respectful, allowing the string
ensemble soundtrack to underscore the pathos of it all rather than injecting a
little energy. Recommended for those who appreciate highly literate stage
drama, A Master Builder opens this
Wednesday (7/23) at New York’s Film Forum.

A Most Wanted Man: When Hoffman Met le Carre

Yes,
intelligence gathering sometimes involves cloak-and-dagger work, but there is
also a lot of bureaucracy. That has always been a side of the secretive
business novelist John le Carré has been closely in touch with. For better or
worse, all the hallmarks of a le Carré bestseller are to be found in Anton
Corbijn’s adaptation of his A Most Wanted
Man (trailer
here), which
opens this Thursday in New York.

Hamburg
was the city where the September 11th terrorist attacks were planned—a
fact German intelligence is keenly aware of. It was not Gunther Bachmman’s
territory at the time, but the spymaster is still in need of redemption. He was
transferred to port city after his Beirut network was exposed. The who’s, how’s,
and why’s remain murky, but there is no question regarding damage done to his
career. However, the world weary scotch drinker has big game in his sights: Dr.
Faisal Abdullah, an ostensive philanthropist and advocate of Muslim tolerance,
whom Bachmann has reason to suspect is furtively funneling funds to terrorist
organizations.

Being
old school to his bones, Bachmann eschews interrogations or anything physical.
He prefers to trap his prey and then turn them into assets. That is the plan
with Abdullah, using the poor hapless Issa Karpov as bait. The son of a Chechen
woman and a high ranking (and therefore corrupt) Soviet military officer,
Karpov understandably identifies with his mother’s side of the family. Escaping
his Russian torturers, Karpov has been branded an Islamist terrorist, but
Bachmann is skeptical. Dieter Mohr, a more politically sensitive rival from an
overlapping agency, would prefer to arrest the Chechen with great fanfare, but
Bachmann sees the newly arrived asylum-seeker as an opportunity.

As
it turns out, Karpov’s despised old man had an account in Hamburg—an account
large enough to be a chip in Bachmann’s game. However, to play it, he will have
to handle Karpov’s immigration attorney, Annabel Richter, and Tommy Brue, the
banker holding his funds. Unfortunately, Bachmann is a le Carré protagonist,
which means he must spend a great deal of time in boardrooms convincing
dim-witted ministers to go along with his plan. For now, Martha Sullivan, the
regional CIA string-puller, will give him time, but her patience and Bachmann’s
trust are limited.

If
you like your thrillers talky, you are already a le Carré reader and therefore
thoroughly primed for Wanted. On the
plus side, Corbijn’s is fully stocked with intelligent characters and meaty
dialogue heavy with meaning. Conversely, le Carré’s moral equivalency between
all parties is present in full force, as well as an aversion to cinematic
action. Although its running time clocks in just over two hours, the ending
still feels unsatisfyingly unfinished, leaving viewers to wonder if everyone
would really leave things as they are.

Of
course, the primary, if not only reason to see Wanted is the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, who fits into the role of
Bachmann like a comfortably rumpled suit. Le Carré has said Hoffman is the only
American who could play his iconic George Smiley—and it is easy to see what he
means. Bachmann and Smiley are clearly cut from same cloth, while Hoffman, Gary
Oldman, and Alec Guinness were/are some of the smartest, most engaging actors
in the business.

Hoffman’s
mushy German accent also works rather well in context, but Rachel McAdams is
not nearly as convincing as Richter, the slumming daughter of privilege human
rights attorney. At least Willem Dafoe certainly looks at home as Brue, the self-loathing
banker. Sadly, Nina Hoss does not have much to do as Bachmann’s lieutenant,
Irna Frey, but she classes up the joint, nonetheless. Most of the German
cast-members largely serve as window dressing, especially Rush’s Daniel Brühl, who is about as easy to spot as Tony Curtis in
The List of Adrian Messenger playing
one of Bachmann’s surveillance specialists. Arguably, it is Robin Wright who
best hangs with Hoffman, warily sparring with his Bachmann as the suspiciously
smooth Sullivan.

Wisely, Andrew Bouvell’s adapted screenplay
somewhat waters down the criticism of post-9-11 American foreign policy, but
anti-Americanism is baked into the fiber of le Carré’s source novel. Yet, it is
the film’s brief but explicit criticisms of Putin’s Russia that feel timelier
now. Corbijn has a good eye for the project, capturing the cold, cerebral world
of intrigue and modernist architecture. There is much to admire about it, but
aside from Hoffman’s haggard everyman performance, the film does it best to
keep viewers at arm’s length, like a film that does not want to be wanted.
Recommended for knowing fans of le Carré and Hoffman, A Most Wanted Man opens this Thursday night (7/24) in New York at
the Landmark Sunshine.

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Gangster Night: Al Capone—Icon

Al
Capone did not leave a lot of evidence lying around—particularly not in his
vault, right Geraldo? Elliott Ness could also confirm the scarcity of Capone’s
paper trail. Almost overnight, he became the original archetype of the sharp
dressed gangster, but his glory days were relatively short-lived. Chicago’s
most famous resident gets the biographical and sociological treatment in Al Capone: Icon (promo here), which airs this
Tuesday during PBS’s “Gangster Night.”

He
was Brooklyn’s native son, but he found his fame and fortune in the Windy City.
It was a precipitous rise from a street barker hustling speakeasy customers to
the boss of the Chicago Outfit. Prohibition made all the difference. As you
might have heard, it never really took. In fact, it led to widespread
acceptance of criminal behavior. Capone had a good run riding that wave. Unlike
his gangster contemporaries, Scarface Al cultivated the media, who gave him
rockstar coverage for a while. However, the carnage of the St. Valentine’s Day
Massacre turned opinion against Capone, even though he was never directly
implicated in the killings.

Of
course, most everyone should know Capone was never convicted for his gangster
business (aside from a relatively minor weapons charge). Nevertheless, Capone
sought to embody the gangster age, so he took the brunt of the public’s
Valentine’s Day outrage. Frankly, most of Icon’s
expert commentary is more concerned with Capone as a media figure and a
model for countless gangster movie protagonists.

Many
viewers will probably want to hear more about Capone’s operations, but frankly
the Feds probably still do too. Regardless, there is an interesting cast
assembled to discuss Capone as a cultural phenomenon, including a veteran
Chicago Commander of Detectives Thomas Reppetto, Capone’s grand niece Deirdre,
very former mobster Frank Calabrese, Jr., and several academics. Rather
surprisingly, the great vocalist Cassandra Wilson also appears (quite
stylishly), discussing Capone’s role as an early patron of jazz as the king of
the Chicago’s nightlife.

While the talking heads are a bit uneven, Icon is still consistently informative
in an entertaining, non-taxing sort of way. Arguably, there is better quality
control for PBS’s lower profile one-off specials like this than some of their
bigger marquee events. Recommended for those who enjoy gangster-watching, Al Capone: Icon premieres this Tuesday
(7/22) as part of “Gangster Night,” along with the History Detectives’ investigation of the Jimmy Hoffa disappearance
(which presumably fails since no indictments have been issued).

Saturday, July 19, 2014

Japan Cuts ’14: Hello! Junichi

Junichi
Hayashida is a naturally empathetic kid. Unfortunately, that does not impress a
lot of third graders. However, he might gain a little bit of confidence through
time spent with his five friends and their bombshell student teacher. Being a
kid is hard, but it still has its moments in Katsuhito Ishii, Kanoko Kawaguchi
& Atsushi Yoshioka’s Hello! Junichi,
which screens as part of the 2014 Japan Cuts: the New York Festival of Contemporary Japanese Film(special festival trailer here).

Anna-Sensei
makes quite an impression on everyone, especially Hayashida’s romantically
frustrated homeroom teacher. However, he still only has eyes for Maeda. During
art class, he found himself borrowing a bunny eraser from her, but he has yet
to gird up the courage to return it. This is the sort of thing Anna-Sensei
picks up on immediately. Initially, this intimidates Hayashida, just like
everything else in life, except more so. Yet, he comes to trust her when she
defends him and his mates when they get into a tight spot.

Although
Junichi’s parents are well to do, he spends more time with more-with-it-than-he-seems
grandfather. Unfortunately, his friend Masato Kuramoto’s home life is much more
difficult. Money is tight, so his soon-to-be single mother must work multiple
jobs. To help him give her special birthday, Hayashida and his friends agree to
stage a special concert for her, with Anna-Sensei’s help, of course.

In
terms of tone, Hello is reminiscent
of Ishii’s The Taste of Tea, but it
substitutes moments of wild but terrestrial zaniness for the magical realism of
his Tochigi-set family pastoral. Co-directed with two of his workshop
graduates, Hello balances a battalion
of characters with ease. They mostly maintain a mood of wistful whimsy, but it
still forthrightly addresses the issue of bullying.

Hikari
Mitsushima, who took no prisoners in Sion Sono’s Love Exposure, once again becomes a force of nature as Anna-Sensei,
the Miss Jean Brodie we always wanted. She develops some real chemistry with
her young co-stars and looks great beating on the various adults who cross her.
Still, young Amon Kabe distinguishes himself, carrying the narrator-chief POV
duties like a good little soldier.

Likewise,
Yohei Hotta and Rio Sasaki are remarkably compelling as the gruff but sensitive
Kuramoto and the forceful aspiring pop idol, Kayo Tanaka. Frankly, the all the third
grade supporting players are quite assured. It is some of their adult
counterparts who get a bit shticky (but not enough to undermine the film’s good
vibes).

Anna-Sensei’s magnetism is undeniable and her
kids are all quite endearing. As a result, it is hard to imagine anyone would
not be won over by Hello’s charm.
Gentle but relatively true to life, it is perfect for family viewing. To that
end, the Japan Society is offering a special $6 admission deal for children
twelve or younger. Recommended with affection, Hello! Junichi screens tomorrow (7/20), the closing day of this
year’s Japan Cuts.

Friday, July 18, 2014

Japan Cuts ‘14: My Little Sweet Pea

Mugiko
Koiwa’s life revolves around anime. Her brother Norio is all about pachinko.
Neither is particularly industrious, but fortunately their long lost mother Saiko
was helping pay the bills, unbeknownst to her daughter. Sadly, Saiko will not
have enough time to rebuild their relationship, but Mugiko will learn to appreciate
her mother after the fact in Keisuke Yoshida’s My Little Sweet Pea (trailer here), which screens as
part of this year’s Japan Cuts: the New York Festival of Contemporary Japanese Film.

Pleading
hardship, Saiko moves in with Mugiko and the surly Norio, who shacks-up with
his girlfriend shortly thereafter. It is a decidedly awkward situation for Koiwa,
who always thought Saiko had abandoned her family. While she makes some halting
efforts, she never really accepts Saiko into her life before the older woman’s
death. Unsure of her own feelings, Koiwa agrees to takes her mother’s ashes to
her provincial home town for her forty-nine day ritual.

However,
Koiwa is rather shocked when the community receives her like a rock star.
Evidently, she is the spitting image of her mother in her younger years. Saiko
only visited once after moving to Tokyo to fruitlessly pursue her pop star dreams,
but she is fondly remembered by all, particularly her cabbie Manabu Inomoto, a
luckless suitor, and Saiko’s best friend, Michiru. It turns out Koiwa has a lot
to learn about her mother and she will have the time to learn, thanks to some
missing internment paperwork.

If
you prefer your films on the cynical side than Sweet Pea might just make you break out in hives. However, anime
fans should sit up and take note, Production I.G (the studio behind Ghost in the Shell) created original
animated sequences seen during Koiwa’s early fangirl sequences. They are pretty
cool, but they are a distinct anomaly in their filmography.

The
real point of Sweet Pea is Koiwa’s journey
rediscovering her lost mother. As her host and guide, Michiru, Yumi Asou is
wonderfully warm and humane, unexpectedly outshining just about everyone. On
the other hand, Yoichi Nukumizu indulges in a bit of shtick as Inomoto.
Nevertheless, he nicely turns his big serious third act speech. Maki Horikita portrays
Koiwa’s internal arc of development with believable restraint, but Ryuhei
Matsuda makes little impression as brother Norio, while Kimiko Yo’s Saiko never
really lands the emotional haymaker.

The Oscar winning Departures(which co-starred Yo) is an obvious comparison film,
with the misunderstood Saiko taking the place of the encoffineer’s absentee
father. While Sweet Pea is not nearly
as devastating, it feels more true to life. It is a wistful, endearing film
that works on its own terms. Recommended for fans of tearjerkers with anime
seasoning, My Little Sweat Pea screens
tomorrow (7/19) at the Japan Society as part of the 2014 Japan Cuts.

J.B. Spins

About Me

J.B. (Joe Bendel) works in the book publishing industry, and also teaches jazz survey courses at NYU's School of Continuing and Professional Studies. He has written jazz articles for publications which would be appalled by his political affiliation. He also coordinated instrument donations for displaced musicians on a volunteer basis for the Jazz Foundation of America during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Send e-mail to: jb.feedback "at" yahoo "dot" com.